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FAQ: "Nightmare" Predator Campaign Guide
Version: 1.0
Author: Dale Taylor a.k.a Rixus Mar
E-mail: rixusmar@hotmail.com
Date: 29 March 2010
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Contents:
- Version History [vhy]
- Introduction [idn]
- Nightmare Predator FAQ
- Tutorial [ttl]
- Jungle [jgl]
- Refinery [rfy]
- Ruins [rns]
- Research Lab [rlb]
- Pyramid [pyd]
- Conclusion [cln]
- Legal Information [lgi]
- Contact Me [cnt]
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- Version History [vhy]
29 Mar 2010: Constructed FAQ in its entirety. Applied all relevent formatting
and cosmetics. Included the use of the "quick find" system. Also
undertook the laborious task of including the "Combat
Fundamentals" in the "Tutorial" section.
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- Introduction [idn]
Hello again folks. If some of you have been following my work you'll know that
this is Part 2 of a trilogy of FAQS I'm writing for AVP on xbox360. The first
being my Nightmare Alien Guide, with the Nightmare Marine Guide being the
concluding part. I was stuck for a time on the Praetorian in the Research Lab
(Nightmare Marine Campaign), so I was beginning to think I wasn't going to get
to finish them. Well, I have now so it's just a case of getting my proverbial
finger out and writing them!
The recommended order for playing the campaigns on any other difficulty
(particularly your FIRST playthrough) is "Marine-Predator-Alien", for reasons
of story, understanding in-game topograghy, etc. I played them in reverse order
(the order of my guides) and regretted doing so, wishing I'd played the Marine
Campaign first (the Alien Campaign suddenly made a bit more sense...). For
Nightmare difficulty I recommend doing them in reverse order
"Alien-Predator-Marine", mainly for the reasons of campaign length and
difficulty because, we must remember, there are no checkpoints on Nightmare.
Some of the Marine levels can be quite long, and you've got to do them in a
"one-er" (not the entire campaign, just the individual levels).
I've stuck with the same layout as my previous guides (cut/paste has saved me a
lot of work in this gargantuan task), laid out in the levels you play as you
play them in the campaign.
I've also implemented a "quick find" structure to my guide. Veterans of these
FAQ sites will know the good old "Highlight, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+F, Ctrl+V". In
layman's terms: you highlight from the contents the heading you want to find
(3 unique characters in: []), copy it, Ctrl+F (opens the "Find" window), then
pasting your copied text in the field provided. This finds the next occurence
of copied text and, as it's a unique set of characters, will scroll you
immediately to that heading in the guide.
As with my previous FAQs, to understand and utilise it fully, there are some
things you and I must assume before we begin:
- You have completed the campaign at least once (preferably twice) with one of
those playthroughs being of at least Normal difficulty (preferably Hard).
- You have a firm grasp of mission objectives, geography, etc. Namely, you
don't need to be led by the hand through the levels and can use your
initiative.
- You're not interested in collecting Trophy Belts. This is sometimes a
conflicting interest and therefore belongs in another FAQ.
Also, before we continue, there are some things you MUST know:
- DON'T take on groups of marines. By groups I mean more than a single marine.
The reason being you'll simply die. You ARE a stealth weapon! Seperate them
and take them out individually. Divide and conquer!
- DON'T get surrounded by aliens! Try and keep on the move so that they're
coming at you from one direction. Don't go for trophy kills if there's more
than one in close proximity, I find you can sometimes take attacks from one
alien (if your health is full to begin with) whilst in the trophy-kill
sequence, but 2 will kill you.
- This is just an "aside" rather than a "must-know" point but I'd include it
anyway:-
Go for trophy-kills (if you want the points for an Elite rating) but make
sure you have the time to pull them off, or it's all the way back to the
start of the level with you. Just remember for, marines: seperate,
trophy-kill when he's on his own; aliens: use any and all weapons at your
disposal, being careful not to completely drain your power, melee up close,
but only trophy-kill if the rest are far away enough. It should be noted that
the fact you're on Nightmare gives you a x4 multiplier on your rating, so
don't worry too much about getting points. The Elite rating should come
anyway, unless you're flying through the level avoiding most of the enemies.
- NO CHECKPOINTS ON NIGHTMARE, so no heroics!
Also, I've found that in the course of writing this FAQ, I use the xbox 360
control pad buttons for commands instead of the actions. For example, instead
of me telling you to do a strong attack I'll tell you "LB" (Left-Bumper).
Here's the standard legend I use throughout:
"LB" - strong claw attack
"RB" - weak claw attack
"x" - interact/distract/trophy-kill, etc.
"LT" - focus mode (used in conjunction with "RB" or "A")
"RT" - d-pad weapons: plasma-caster, combi-stick, etc.
I think I've bored you enough. It's high time we got on with the rest of the
FAQ!
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- Nightmare Predator FAQ
- Tutorial [ttl]
--------
This part doesn't really call for any "walkthrough" description as such, due to
it being a tutorial, and therefor is self-explanatory. In fact, I don't think
you even need to do this "level" on Nightmare because you don't get a score
rating for it. It's a good idea to do it anyway because it'll give you an idea
of how difficult the aliens are going to be.
Seeing as how this level is a tutorial, I deem it only fitting that I mention
something about "Combat Fundamentals": I've had a couple of e-mails asking for
help in the next level and, rather than break the flow of the narrative,
decided it was more appropriate in this section (as these valuable lessons can
be applied throughout the game).
Hand-to-Hand Combat (General)
Hand-to-hand combat is surprisingly easy, even on Nightmare. Just bear in mind
to only go for trophy-kills if there's no other marines around, or if other
aliens are far away enough. So, when reading the following points, if your
surrounded, read "grab with 'x'" as "kill with 'LB'/'RB' combinations". Also,
if you must engage marines in single combat, NEVER block, as they'll just shoot
you (see "Marine Combat Fundamentals"). Conversely, when combatting aliens,
ALWAYS block (see "Alien Combat Fundamentals").
When encountering either enemy type, there's always the option of attacking
from a distance with the "RB" lunge ("LT and "RB") and immediately grab with
"x" once he's been knocked over. If he's not been knocked over, strike with
"LB" (circling behind your prey whilst waiting for your attack to "charge"),
then go for the grab as before.
These details apply to both enemies, but there are some points that are
specific to either enemy types (marine/alien). They are as follows:
Marine Combat Fundamentals:
- Divide and conquer. Distract them to a secluded spot, use "RB" while in focus
mode (doing a lunge attack), then press "x" as they try to rise to their
feet. Remember, you are a stealth weapon. Remain invisible at all times and
use your thermal vision. Divide and conquer!
- Use the plasma-caster when 2 or more marines are together, it has a blast
radius. It may blow one up completely and stagger the other, if so repeat
above tactic ("RB" and "x").
- Go for trophy-kills. A stealth kill is performed by taking an enemy from
behind, which is an unblockable attack, whilst a grab from the front is done
after staggering them with "LB" (when close) or an "RB lunge" (in Focus Mode
from a distance). A grab from the front can still be broken free if they have
enough health remaining. If a marine fights you off DON't attack with "RB".
Always use "LB", whilst circling behind him, and by the time it connects
you'll be behind him. If this doesn't kill him, then you're in a good
position to grab with "x". The reason you never use "RB" for the above is,
they'll block, elbow, reverse and drill you when you're helpless: "LB" is to
negate this.
- Never have a stand-up fight with a marine, ESPECIALLY if there's another
nearby! They'll block, elbow, drill with weapon, or any combination thereof,
and kill you swiftly. Get out, get invisible, seperate, and destroy.
Otherwise affectionately known (if you've been following my previous FAQs) as
"Divide and Conquer".
- Later, once you attain the combi-stick, your life will be made a HELL of a
lot easier! You can kill from a distance and remain invisible, making the
battle androids a piece of cake. Another thing I discovered: once you bring
the combi-stick up (holding "RT") you can use your 3 levels of zoom, enabling
you to maintain accuracy at greater distances, before releasing "RT". Don't
even try it on multiplayer though, targets never stay still long enough!
Alien Combat Fundamentals:
- Don't get surrounded! Aliens' strength lies in their speed and numbers. Keep
on the move, forcing them to come at you from a single direction. Try to
whittle their numbers down with ranged weapons if you have them. Smart-disc
is a cracker, while a well-placed plasma-caster blast can be good for crowd
control, possibly opening up an opportunity for a tophy-kill...
- Remain in normal vision. This is your best option until acquiring your "Alien
Vision" later in the campaign. Not only are they a little harder to see
(sometimes) in Thermal Vision, but targeting doesn't work on them either:
that's "RB" lunge, plasma-caster, etc. out the window then.
- Be wary of acid blood. While not as deadly to a predator as it is to a
marine, you must remember you are playing the game on nightmare. If a group
of aliens have taken your health down to its last segment, and you make good
your escape through a puddle of acid blood, you may find your escape cut
short. I've also been killed by acid blood while trophy-killing, so beware!
- Go for trophy-kills. This point is much the same as the marines' except for
one difference I've noticed: if there's only one alien nearby during the
trophy-kill sequence, so long as your health is relatively full to begin
with, you can survive the ordeal (albeit with not much health left) and take
out the bothersome xeno; if there's 2 or more nearby - forget it.
- It should be noted here (before I mention the next point) that when using
"LB" attack, ALWAYS either back up, or circle behind, while the predator's
drawing his hand back, then timing your attack "re-entry" to coincide with
the strike connecting. This is to prevent the alien from getting any kind of
quick attack in before you can pull it off.
- While up close, ALWAYS block! Once your block is up they only have 2 options:
weak attack or strong attack. If they go for a STRONG attack (you'll know
this by the way they rear up on their hind legs), attack twice with "RB" (but
not a third time, as they'll have their block up by then, which they'll
follow with a counter of their own) and make the third strike an "LB" attack
(whilst reversing, stopping them from getting a weak attack in). This should
open them up for a trophy-kill, if not, repeat until dead. If they go for a
WEAK attack, simply counter, but instead of striking them once, implement the
"RB","RB","LB" mentioned above.
- Once you have the smart disc your life becomes a whole lot easier. When
blocking, fire your disc. If it doesn't kill the xeno outright, it'll
certainly knock him over, creating an opening for the grab with "x".
Enough with the Tutorial. You are now well enough equipped to begin your hunt
in the Jungle...
- Jungle [jgl]
------
This is the first real level in the campaign proper and it can actually be
quite fun once you know what you're doing, but be careful because it's a fair
size and there's plenty that can go wrong. The level itself should present no
real problem until you come across the first Youngblood. I had a couple of
e-mails about this part so here's my explanation:
Once you activate the wrist bracer, 2 aliens will come for you. Remain in this
first half of the jungle "corridor" (don't go further forward than the fallen
Youngblood, I don't know if this triggers the rest of the aliens) and melee
them. Simply block, counter, and grab for these first 2, if they rear up on
their hind legs, simply quickly intercept with an attack. On no uncertain terms
do you use your plasma-caster at this point!
Once you've dispatched these 2, head further into the jungle "corridor" to
activate the rest of the aliens. Same idea as before except you can now run up
and down the entire area, and:
- Try to only use the Plasma Caster if there's 2 or more aliens grouped
together, but don't worry if you only take out one. Try and grab any that get
knocked over in blasts, if they're too far use the lunge attack. Remember as
well that your plasma-caster only has so many charges, and can't be recharged
until you get over the wall.
- Don't go for the trophy kill if there's any aliens nearby, it's certain
death. Instead, follow up with "LB", there's plenty opportunity for trophies
later in the level, earning you an "Elite" rating.
- KEEP ON THE MOVE! Don't get cornered! Keep running up and down the
"corridor", forcing them to come from one direction. And remember, DON'T GET
SURROUNDED! They can stealth kill you with one grab, just as you can to them.
After killing all of the serpents switch to invisibility/thermal vision and hop
over the gate and onto the roof of building B04. This compound area is quite
easy so long as you remain in stealth and pick the marines off individually,
bearing in mind that the smart gun emplacements can see you - even when you're
invisible. Also remember that if a marine's patrol route isn't favourable you
can distract him to a more "comfortable" location.
After eliminating the 5 or so marines outside, head inside main building B01
and grab the health shard on the table, recharge your plasma-caster, and make
your way upstairs. Take out the light at the top of the stairs and the marine
should come to investigate. Trophy-kill him at the top of the stairs and go
into the main room. If the admin guy notices you, he'll only run to the other
side of the room. You must trophy-kill this guy for the retinal scanners
later in the level.
Do what you have to do at the consoles and pick up the health shard if you need
it. Deal with the 6 aliens that come up the stairs: they come up individually
and, so long as you remember the "combat fundamentals" from the Tutorial, you
should have very lttle problem dispatching them - so long as each is done
quickly and efficiently, so that you're never up against more than one. I find
if I stand relatively close to the door you came in (the only door in the room)
and lunge attack, followed by trophy-kill, they should die before the next one
comes. Recharge etc. and head to the marsh area.
Before heading up to the cabin containing the second Youngblood, take out the 4
or 5 marines that wander the lower swamp - they'll only curse trouble later. If
you get in any bother there's a health shard up on a ledge to the right as you
enter the marsh just now , or left if you're standing behind the smart gun
(it's a good idea to take this out too!) looking into the marsh. Hold "LT" to
see it: you'll have to do some fancy jumping up the tree closest to it, and you
might have some problems getting up, but trust me, you can get it.
Now we need to head up to the cabin containing the second Youngblood (building
M01). Jump up from the marsh floor directly underneath building M01, next to
what looks like some kind of giant water-tank. Kill the 2 marines that patrol
its perimeter, along with the other that remains down the slope slightly nearer
the caves, making a total of 3 marines up here.
Once you've picked up the mines and detonated the second Youngblood's wrist
bracer you'll be attacked by a couple of aliens. I tend to stand on top of the
water-tank structure when dealing with these 2, out of the way of the marines
below, speaking of which...
From the top of the water tank you should be able to see a marine on the
top-left of the final compound area. Blast him with the plasma caster and
another should come out the gate and follow the wall to the smart gun.
Trophy-kill him, then jump up on the ledge to the right and take out the marine
up here (sometimes there's 2, try and plasa cast him beyond the gate if so).
From this ledge, hop-scotch over to the other side and take out the guy up
here. Using distraction, mines, and your environment, you should be able to
deal with the remaining marines on the ground floor. All told, including the
first marine you plasma'd on the ledge and his friend that came to investigate,
there should be 7 (yes, 7) marines in this final area.
I would like to note here that I initially done this stage with reltive ease
but, lo and behold, when I decided to write this FAQ I died at this "7-marine"
point MANY times, angering me to the point of nearly giving up on the FAQ! For
a first level (as far as first levels go) this can be a bit tricky, especially
without any mistakes. So be warned.
Use the admin guy's head on the final retinal scanner and the doors will open,
but be careful, because there's 2 marines waiting to end your flawless streak
and send you all the way back to the start of the level! And just when you
thought you were "high and dry"... Deal with them how you please, before
heading into the primary human enclosure. Whew!
- Refinery [rfy]
--------
These first 4 marines should be no problem. One will patrol quite close to you.
Wait for him to turn around (he'll start to walk back to his friends) and
quickly jump down and trophy-kill him from behind, before he wanders around the
corner, denying his friends a line of fire. Simply use your plasma caster on
the remaining 3.
Collect the health shard and recharge (taking care to stay out of sight of the
mounted smart gun at the end of the bridge) before jumping to the next area
over the bridge. Run up the slope and head left, following the path until you
reach a health shard at the dead-end (I believe it's the entrance to this area
in the Marine Campaign). Come back and there should be 2 marines patrolling the
perimeter of the outbuilding: divide and conquer, using the art of distraction.
Depending on how long you took to do the steps mentioned above, they may have
wandered down the slope or to some other place nearby; same still applies - use
your initiative. Once you've dealt with these 2, head up and around the gang
plank to find 2 more marines below (next to the turbine you charge your wrist
bracer at to proceed), repeat as above.
Proceed to the roof and activate the crane, there's also a health shard up here
if you need it - it's located by one of the struts of the crane. Jump on the
crane and allow it to take you to the other side, where 3 marines will emerge.
Lure them around the corner (it's to the right of the crane, as you face it
coming over the canyon on the crane) and deal with them on an individual basis.
Don't use the plasma caster here because you may need it in the next area.
Continue through and up the elevator shaft. You'll find yourself in a room with
some marines with their backs to you, watching the door. Don't alert the
marines to your presence until the aliens come, or you'll be slaughtered
miserably. When the aliens enter you'll find yourself participating in a
"tripl-threat" match. It depends on how you want to do this, but I'd rather
trophy-kill the marines that back away from the xeno's as they'll give you the
most bother. Then take out any xeno's that are left, there'll be a few but just
remember your "combat fundamentals" and you'll be fine. Don't be shy using your
plasma caster in here because there's a charge station in this room. Once
everything's dead, recharge and proceed to the machine room.
Now this machine room was a nightmare - literally! After writing the paragragh
below I soon discovered that you can jump over all the turbines and run out the
exit without ever having any of the grief mentioned below. You may have to kill
one alien in the last corridor, but other than that you're home free. If you
decided to take the advice of this paragragh, skip the next and read "Continue
to the fallen Elite". If you're clinically insane, or if you just fancy a
ridiculously unfair challenge, then continue reading the next paragragh. It
pains me to delete the paragragh (it's quite a laborious task this FAQ-writing
business) so I've decided to keep it in for the clinically insane people
previously mentioned.
In the machine room you'll encounter 2 marines on the gang plank up above and
countless aliens all around (I tried, when confirming this guide, to count the
aliens but kept dying at stupid places - thus, losing my patience! I last
counted 8 before turning the machine off. I may update this with a specific
number at a later juncture). You could leave the marines be, in the hope that
they'll kill some xeno's for you, but I don't like leaving anything to chance -
especially on Nightmare! Jump up and plasma cast the first, trophy-killing the
second. If you're going to die on this level, it'll be here and now. Take them
out as you see fit, being careful of your trophy-kills. Use your plasma caster
on groups of xeno's and melee the hell out of any individuals. And KEEP MOVING!
Don't be shy with your plasma caster as there's a charge station in this room,
as well as one outside the exit - you'll need them. Beware though! I was killed
quite a few times recharging my wrist bracer: they don't come near you, you
think the coast is clear, you go for the charge, and 2 xeno's come rushing in
for the kill! Go figure. Once you leave the machine room, before proceeding to
the hive, take an immediate right, down the stairs to find a health shard - I'm
sure you need it...
Continue to the fallen Elite, destroying any UNOPENED xeno eggs, picking up
health shards, recharging, etc. Once you've acquired the smart disc, destroy
the 3 xeno eggs in the room (they're in the lower portion of the large room,
you can't miss them), and a 4th in the next room with the hole in the floor,
before dropping down to the area below. Destroy the water pipe and wait for the
water to douse the flames. In the meantime, hold off the aliens with the smart
disc or the plasma caster (doesn't matter if you use the plasma caster because
it's the end of the level), keeping on the move, until the way forward is clear
of flames. Now simply make a dash for the end, ignoring any and all aliens, and
you'll find yourself one step closer to that elusive "One Ugly Mother"
achievement!
- Ruins [rns]
-----
This first part is designed to be a taster of what's to come later in the
level. Jump across the fallen bridge and activate the first of 3 species symbol
switches. Take a right as far as you can go and jump over to the ledge for a
health shard. Jump back the way you came, except to a lower ledge, and jump
left to the 2nd symbol switch. After activating this, head left as far as you
can go and, after a couple of jumps, you'll come to the final symbol switch.
There are now xeno's chasing you, but have no fear. Simply jump up to the next
ledge, sprint to the first species symbol switch, up the stone steps, and
through the corridor (ignoring the 3 aliens laying in wait) into the next
chamber, where the door will close behind you.
This next part is trial-and-error. You have to make your way to the top of the
chamber, navigating the moving platforms in the process. I found the easiest
way up is to jump on the lowest platform next to the door you entered, to the
right as you enter (or to the left as you look at the door from within the
chamber). Jump up the moving platforms in an anti-clockwise direction. It may
take a couple of attempts, until the timing is favourable, but shouldn't take
more than 3. Once at the top, pick up the Predator Lord's mask and head
outside.
Ignore everything until you come to the "large" ledge, the last before going
over the long stone walkway. From here you have enough room to take out the few
aliens who've followed you, taking care to avoid these new xeno's spit, before
heading along the stone walkway and into the caverns. The caverns are
relatively easy to navigate (especially if you were stuck for as long as I was
on this level in the Marine Campaign, you'll know the caverns like the back of
your wrist-bracer), just head right and continue in that general direction.
Pick up the health shard on the way, before exiting the caverns and taking out
the 3 marines and however many aliens in the open area. Jump up to the ledge
above the locked door to find another species symbol switch, activate this to
gain entry to the next area.
From up here you can command a wide view of the area. There should be an active
mounted smart gun below you - leave this and it should deal with the swarm of
aliens that come to attack. Once everything's lying dead on the ground, it's
time to turn off the smart gun (it's indescriminate about who it kills!). You
can turn off the smart gun by dropping down 2 levels into the room you would've
entered had the locked door not been locked. Beware! The laptop is guarded by 3
marines. Your best bet is to drop down to the ledge immediately below you,
which is the level above the marines. By circling the perimeter of this floor,
you should have a line of fire on all 3 marines. Deal with them how you please,
destroy the laptop, and head outside to take on a fresh horde of aliens - no
problem with the smart disc. Once you've slaughtered your revered prey, head up
to the exit. The exit you used in the Marine Campaign will be blocked so you'll
have to jump up above, activate the species symbol switch, and head through to
the ruins proper...
The objective here is to find the 3 species symbol switches (there's actually
4 - I'll explain in a moment). It doesn't matter what order you activate them,
and they're easily seen in "focus mode". Their locations are as follows:
- In the structure immediately in front of where you enter the area. It should
be noted here that this is one is not inclusive of the 3 that activate the
door to the arena. I activated this one and 2 of the others and wondered why
the door wouldn't open. I think this switch is responsible for opening other
doors within these external structures, though I'm not certain. Any useful
information would be greatly appreciated in clearing this matter up.
- At the base of the central pyramid, on the side facing where you entered the
area.
- On one of the sides of the central pyramid there's a statue of a xenomorph
looking down at the floor below. Follow his gaze to find a marine guarding
this switch.
- This one's by the corner structure, not immediately in front of where you
entered but further forward, yet still on the left-hand side. If you imagine
you enter this area in the "south-west" corner, it's on the "north-west"
corner. An easier way to explain would be: it's on the platform you begin on
the Alien Campaign.
Once you've located these 3 (or 4) symbol switches and eliminated all of the
marines (optional), head into the arena to face the Praetorian and her minions.
Now the Praetorian is a lot easier than you think, it's the other aliens
that'll hinder you. Take them out quickly first, then simply run around the
outside of the arena throwing your smart disc at the pursuing Praetorian. Once
she's down to around half/third health she'll call for more aliens. Stick to
the same strategy as before, smart disc any xeno's that get in your way - but
don't get side-tracked! Keep moving because you don't want the Praetorian to
get anywhere near you. Pick up the health shard on the pillar if you need it.
Once she's dead, jump up to get the combi-stick.
- Research Lab [rlb]
------------
Now that you have the combi-stick your life is made a WHOLE lot easier. Unlike
in multiplayer, you remain cloaked when using the spear - even after a
successful strike! I also discovered that you can zoom by clicking the
right-stick on your xbox 360 controller, maintaining accuracy at greater
distances - you have to zoom AFTER you draw the combi-stick, but BEFORE you
throw it (basically, zoom after you hold "RT" and before you release "RT"). And
it's a one-hit-kill (unless they're invisible - see the "Pyramid" level),
making the battle androids (a bit bothersome on Alien Campaign, and even more
bothersome on Marine Campaign) a piece of cake!
You've done the level before (see "Introduction") so there should be no problem
until you reach the research lab proper (where you begin the Alien Campaign).
Just remember to remain invisible and kill any androids at a distance with your
combi-stick - even a shot to the legs is an instant kill, so there really is no
excuse for not reaching the lab.
Once inside the lab you'll be confronted by numerous aliens, and 2 or 3 battle
androids, to contend with. Don't worry about the androids - just stay back and
the xeno's should take care of them. As for the xeno's, at the risk of
repeating myself, your life is made a whole lot easier now that you have the
combi-stick in your possession: simply block, counter, strike with combi-stick
- instant kill. The intricacies of combat will vary for every playthrough, and
you will need to improvise, so I'm not going to hold your hand. Just know that
this level is easier now that you are the proud owner of a combi-stick, so use
it wisely.
After recovering the stolen wrist bracer, exit the room to find a couple of
aliens and more than a few battle androids. The androids will take care of the
aliens, and you'll take care of the androids. Now you can either take out the
androids between yourself and the exit, or (like me) you could clear this
entire area of battle androids before continuing: just remain invisible and put
your combi-stick to good use!
Once you exit the lab, you'll come to the place where the humans kept the
Queen. You'll see some opened eggs lying around, which means there could be
face-huggers about - I didn't hang around to find out! Run/jump straight
through this small room into the cargo area where you'll be greeted by some 6
or 7-plus battle androids. Same tactics as before except some will turn
invisible. No "biggy". Just keep thermal vision on and you can vaguely see
their shimmer. There's a couple of health shards lying around so you should be
ok, if not, you shouldn't be playing on Nightmare difficulty. Clear the room
(not forgetting the 2 above on the gang plank where you entered), call the
elevator, and go face this Abomination! This was, probably,the easiest level in
the Predator Campaign.
- Pyramid [pyd]
-------
First off, upon disembarking the elevator, you'll be met by 6 aliens. Once
again, easier than they look - run away, turn around, combi-stick, easy (the
bridge is a good place for this as they can only come in one direction, see
"Combat Fundamentals"). Once the funeral procession is over, the door to the
next area will open. Pick up both health shards at either end of the bridge
(you can see them easily in focus mode) before heading into the next area.
In this next area you have to activate the 3 species symbol switches, whilst
contending with MANY aliens. You only ever have to deal with 5 or 6 at a time,
but I'll note here that I hung around to kill the aliens first (so I could
activate the switches in peace) and they seemed to infinately spawn. There's
about 4 or 5 health shards lying around so, hopefully, you'll be ok.
The 3 switches can be found: one immediately in front of where you enter, with
the other two being on the upper ledges to the left and right. Once you've
activated your first switch some battle androids should appear. They'll be
contented to kill the swarm of xeno's, so just keep your distance and you
should be fine. You may have to kill an android or 2 up on the ledges, but the
aliens sometimes get there before you - making your life all that little bit
easier.
Now the best strategy I opted for was to activate switches as quick as I could,
taking on as few xeno's as possible, and leaving the battle androids in the
hands of the xeno's. Once you've activated all of the species symbol switches,
any aliens in this room will retreat. Eradicate any androids left over but be
careful, because they'll turn invisible. Just employ the same "combi-stick
tactics" as before and everything'll be alright. I'll note here that (contrary
to my previous statements) I speared a few androids from one of the upper
ledges and noticed that, instead of killing them outright, I knocked them over
instead - forcing me to spear them a second time to kill them. It happened once
on the previous level and I've come to the conclusion that it's to do with
their invisibility: if they're invisible, it takes 2 strikes of the combi-stick
to kill them; if they're visible, it takes one strike of the combi-stick to
kill them.
You can either activate the switches as quickly as possible, or dither around
and wait for the xeno's to kill the androids for you - increasing the risk of
xeno's killing you too. Either way, once you've activated all of the switches,
clear the room, heal and stock up on health shards (like I say there's plenty
around), recharge (you shouldn't need to, but just in case), and head on up to
the Abomination...
Now - to slay the Abomination! I don't mean to sound conceited, because I find
myself writing this sentence more often than I'd like, but he's NOT AS HARD AS
HE SEEMS.
This boss has 3 stages. For the first stage he'll simply follow you around the
circular path. Keep going round in circles, throwing mines out as you go. He
might gain some ground on you, but just keep running! One thing you must know
when fighting the Abomination is to NEVER LET IT GET CLOSE TO YOU! Once it
starts clawing you, there's no escape and, thus, game over. Keep this process
up until it's health falls to around half/ 2 thirds health. It'll jump up to
the ledge on high and attempt to destroy the complex. Second stage begins...
Second stage is much the same except, when you get the chance, fire your
combi-stick when he's staggered. As you run around, you'll come across mines
that it's jumped over which, in turn, haven't detonated. These are good spots
(as you don't have to waste valuable seconds laying a mine) to whip out your
spear and nail him - remember though, to run well past the mine before turning
around. This ensures you have enough time to turn around and get away after
throwing the combi-stick. This makes a big difference and should take him to a
quarter health in no time. Enter third stage...
For this third stage, I simply jump to one of the central pillars, place mines
around the pillar in a "compass" formation (that's 4 mines in total), equip the
combi-stick, and wait for it to come to you. It doesn't matter exactly where
around the pillar you place the mines, just so long as they're evenly spread
(like 4 points of the compass). Once the Abomination draws near, keep the
pillar between it and you and it'll jump onto the platform you're on. The
Abomination will walk around and try to get to you, detonate one of the mines,
and stagger itself. You need to quickly strike it with the combi-stick, and get
the hell out of dodge, throwing mines down every second or third jump. Once
you've lured him away from pillar you were on, go back to the pillar, replace
any detonated mines, and repeat. You should now the proud owner of the "One
Ugly Mother" achievement. Congratulations.
I'll finish off by saying that, when testing this guide, the Abomination was
quick enough to catch me on one of the central pillars and attempted to
trophy-kill me. I had one square of health left, whilst he detonates 2 mines
(without being staggered I might add) and managed to get away quick enough to
heal. So, the moral of the story: he's going to get the odd hit in as you're
laying down mines; just remember to heal at the end of each "stage" (there's a
few health shards lying around) and if he gets near you - BUG OUT!
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- Conclusion [cln]
Whew! Thank God that's over with. We're now 2 thirds of the way towards
completing every campaign on Nightmare. I'd only like to say that, looking at
the finished product, it was fun to write this FAQ. I won't deny, there were
times I was cursing ever beginning this "fool's errand" but, just like a ship
weathering the storm, I look back and say "that wasn't so bad, was it?".
I'm now going to begin writing the Nightmare Marine FAQ, my third and final
installment to this (sometimes) fun trilogy. Not immediately though. I think
I'll treat myself to a day or 2's break, before digging the trenches again -
but have faith, it will arrive. I know the Nightmare Marine Campaign is the one
most people will struggle with and, thus, will be the most eagerly anticipated.
I like to save the best for last (",)!
If there's any one thing I'm not happy with in this FAQ it's the "Combat
Fundamentals". I've re-written it I don't know how many times and it still
doesn't feel as fluent and comprehensive as I would have liked - but I suppose
you've got to call it a day sometime, polish it off, and deliver some kind of
finished product. I'll admit here that it was that single section that occupied
most of my time writing this guide, which explains the lengthy delay between
the Nightmare Alien FAQ and this one: I promise you will not have to wait as
long for the Nightmare Marine FAQ.
If anyone has any useful criticism on how to better the "Combat Fundamentals"
section, if ANY part of the FAQ is erroneous (I'm sure there will be - I'm only
human after all), or you just want to tell me I did a good (or bad) job, please
see the "Contact Me" section.
P.S I won't appreciate silly emails telling me I don't know how to use
apostrophes, etc. For example, I know that the plural of "xeno" is "xenos" and
not "xeno's", I just thought it looked it better.
Thanks again for taking the time to read my FAQ, and I'll see you all again
soon.
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- Legal Information [lgi]
This Nightmare Predator FAQ is the property of the author Dale Taylor and may
only be used by Gamefaqs.com, Gamespot.com, and any other sites owned and
operated by them. This may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for
personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise
distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on
any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited,
and a violation of copyright.
All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their
respective trademark and copyright holders.
Copyright 2010 Dale Taylor
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- Contact Me [cnt]
Any queries, criticisms (constructive or otherwise), or if you just want to
tell me I'm a pompous wind-bag who loves the sound of his own voice, you can
get me at:
e-mail: rixusmar@hotmail.com
gamertag: Rixus Mar
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